You are probably reading this because you are interested in coaching children. My guess is that deep down you feel you have a calling, a purpose bigger than yourself. You want to make a difference? Am I on track so far?

Whether that purpose is coaching your own child to become a leader or supporting other people's children, I know that you are reading this blog because you have a fire in your belly that has been prompted by all the challenges that you are seeing children facing.

I can assure you that there is nothing more rewarding than knowing that you have made a positive impact in a child's life. Not just an impact that is short lived but something that will lay the foundation for their entire adult life. How do I know this? Many of the children I have coached are now successful adults. For example, I have a Doctor, an Accountant, an international model, a very ambitious entrepreneur, a head of an international charity. All of them still in touch with me because I made an impact...

There are five, very common reasons why children misbehave. It is extremely useful for a Kids Life Coach to know these because if you can pinpoint the root cause of the misbehavior, you can be more successful at reducing it.

1) They want to test whether adults will enforce rules.

A child's main job is to figure out how their complex world works and in order to master the things they need at each developmental level they will test the adults who care for them which are usually their parents. They are literally trying to see where the boundaries are, or, if they exist at all. To coach a child means getting them used to boundaries and limits.  This way, their children will adopt positive values and gain self-esteem.

2) They experience different sets of expectations

Children will misbehave if they are held to expectations that are beyond their developmental levels. Consistency is hugely important in making a child feel safe and secure and able to have a comfortable...

I want you to imagine you are a 10-year old child and you right now are driving a bus without adult supervision. You can't reach the pedals, you don't know the rules of the road, you are responsible for the people on the bus, but yet nobody has taught you the skills to be responsible as a bus driver. You need supervision, but there isn't anybody to show you or help you.

Being a child, you may see this challenge in one of two ways:

1) just get on with it and you see the adventure and you embrace it whole heartedly or

2) You are filled with fear of what could go wrong and you ask for help.

Which do you think you would have felt as a 10-year old? No matter which you choose, there is a high likelihood of crashing the bus. How would you feel when you get blamed as a 10-year old for crashing the bus if an adult irresponsibly let you drive it in the first place.

This is like a beautiful analogy for your own inner child where your subconscious mind drives your behaviour based on our...

It happens everyday, where children label themselves as: not fitting in, feeling a failure, being stupid, being different, or worthless. These children didn't get to this thought space on their own. Somebody or something has reinforced their perceptions of their inabilities rather than their abilities. They have come to believe this as their truth and this leaves them vulnerable to the natural ebb and flow of stress that is part of life.

Then we have the children who feel accepted, likeable, confident. They can solve problems and overcome challenges. They are the ones who are optimistic and put a smile on their face even when they have the right to cry. What is it that makes these children able to deal with life more positively and evade the feelings of worthlessness that have come to surround other children who have faced challenges and been unable to surmount them?

The difference is that somebody somewhere, has equipped them with the tools for making responsible choices that leave...

Now picture this scenario:  A boy has been excluded from his school for punching his teacher. The teacher is known to taunt the children, use sarcasm and derogatory statements.

The boy, who has shown his temper before, acted out of a space of anger and frustration and his behaviour cost him dearly.  He is sent to another school, but his reputation precedes him. He isn't even given the respect or the chance to redeem himself and show people the positive side of who he is.  He is judged and labelled and through this, he gives up and creates a self-fulfilling prophecy of bad behaviour and poor choices.

Along comes you as his Kids Life Coach, who knows the boy's background but tells the boy that all past behaviours and bad choices are left at the door. These will not enter into your coaching relationship. The boy is safe to express himself, but in your Coaching Sessions, he finds a place where choices are made easy. Within the Coaching Space of unconditional acceptance,...

We know as adults that life is not black and white, right or wrong but as children we were taught differently. Children have an inherent need and desire to want to fit in and to be accepted and validated.

Let's take a look at your subconscious mind for a minute. It has the software for your involuntary functions, emotions, and habits. Most of your habits and emotional conditioning were programmed in early childhood before you were mature (or adult enough) to make proper decisions. Many were programmed haphazardly and usually by parents, teachers, peers, the media or technology.

Freud said, We learn as children how we react emotionally and this is carried into adulthood. When we are children, we do not have the faculties that we do in adulthood. We do not know what we are going to need in adulthood to cope. Therefore, as adults we (often) react as children.

It is important to gain an understanding of how we are subconsciously programmed throughout our lives by the things we hear....

To be a success at coaching children is definitely not about being seriously adult like, it is more about tapping into that inner child of yours that is waiting to come out and play. You and I are not perfect and we are work in progress because we understand the value of being successful in life. We are human and we are also looking for our own answers and part of this is the fact that you want to make a difference and leave a legacy at the same time. So what does success mean to you? Oh my this question has been asked in many contexts and I am sure that you will understand by now that it means different things to different people.

I feel that success and leadership go hand in hand no matter the age, circumstances, background, culture, religion, opportunities or abilities. So to answer the question: How can I become a success as a Kids Life Coach? Start seeing your age as a number that is your tally of wisdom, a score card of experience and a celebration of your life well lived.

To...

So here are some ways to coach children to have a positive attitude:

1. Coach children to realise that they are not victims despite what they may be facing is about getting them to choose to not get swept up in an ocean of negativity. Coaching children to be positive and think like a winner is about accentuating their strengths and talents whilst at the same time acknowledging their areas needing improvement through a healthy sense of self awareness.  This way, they learn to respect others and choose to display their behaviour that embodies positivity as a choice. It is about coaching children to actively monitor their thoughts, words and actions. Through a heightened sense of self awareness, they can begin to choose to replace negative with positive.

2. Coaching gives children the much needed time and space to explore the world on their own terms. That is how they learn to think, invent and socialise; to take pleasure from things; to work out who they are, rather than what the...